Bailly forced off with a potential head injury in Man Utd match against Watford

When he was hurried off the pitch after colliding with goalkeeper Dean Henderson, Eric Bailly was a first-half victim for Manchester United against Watford on Saturday.

The defender started the third-round clash of the United FA Cup alongside Axel Tuanzebe at the back as the Reds looked to advance toward their opponents in the Championship.

And things seemed to be going to plan for the hosts at Old Trafford when, after just five minutes, Scott McTominay shot them into the lead.

But after an unfortunate mishap involving two of his men, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who heavily rotated his squad for the cup game, was forced into a shift just before half-time.

Henderson was tasked with clearing a cross from Nathaniel Chalobah from his post, and managed to punch the ball away from risk.

But the former Sheffield United loanee hit Bailly in the process, who’d been floored by the impact.

Before being walked off by United medical personnel, the Ivorian received treatment on the pitch and obviously seemed to be suffering the consequences of the crash as he seemed dazed.

With the risk of a head injury, United took no chance, withdrawing Bailly from the game and sending Harry Maguire for the final minutes of the first half in his place.

During 2020-21, Bailly was in and out of the Reds line-up, and went almost three months without an appearance after being sidelined at the hands of Tottenham in October in the aftermath of the club’s embarrassing 6-1 reverse.

But just before the festive season, Solskjaer reminded him of the defense, and he went on to start the last three United Premier League matches, most recently playing all 90 minutes of their 2-1 New Year’s Day win over Aston Villa.